Woman 3 - She Sells Sea Shells At The Sea Shore Poem by Geeta Radhakrishna Menon

When I visited the Andaman islands,
I met an interesting young woman,
She was selling sea shells at the sea shore.
I was attracted to the pearls and semi-precious stones
That hung attractively in her shop -
A thatched hut lined on the shore of
Kala Pathar beach in Havelock Island.
The plump young woman
With a charming rounded face brightened up,
When I stepped into her little endearing shop.

I am attracted to jewellery, specially
Rustic and tribal jewellery
That gives an earthy look,
Fragrance of the mother earth,
A feel of the ocean and the mountains!
I flashed a smile at this woman.
She smiled back, though looking a bit surprised.
At once, a rapport was born between us,
A relationship established,
An unnamed bond of purity like the pearls.

This is a beautiful beach famed as the Kalapathar beach,
A long beach that is spotted with black patches,
Spread and interspersed with several black rocks,
Distinctly visible like a design in this pristine island.
The Islands have a tropical climate,
It begins to rain any time.So it did! .
In that drizzling coolness of the beach
With numerous trees around swaying their branches,
I felt joyful
And in a mood to chat!

I asked the woman dressed in a log gown
What her name was?
She said ‘Tapori'.
That sounded very enchanting!
Like the pink, blue, green and black gems.
As I was looking at the various stone necklaces,
Tapori began to talk and I listened.
She said her life is a sad tale.
She was married at a young age
To a handsome boy from her community.

Her husband was keen on education,
And not remain as a labourer or an Island hand.
Tapori decided to help her husband.
She worked hard and spent all her earnings
On her husband's education.
He studied well and completed his graduation.
But while he studied, many new things happened.
He met a beautiful and an educated girl
And fell in love with this girl.

As Tapori reached this point of her story,
Tears started trickling down her eyes.
I was so moved that I felt a lump in my throat.
She let go of her husband with this pretty girl.
She was all alone now,
Struggling to meet both ends meet.
I felt so bad,
I just picked thousand rupees from my wallet
And placed it in her hands.
She was overwhelmed.

Meanwhile, my daughter Radhika, was calling me to get back.
I hurriedly clicked a picture of Tapori, with her cute little stall.
As I walked back, Tapori came running,
Handed me a small bundle of
Stone necklaces, earrings and shells.
I stopped to click a picture of hers.
She gave a bright smile through her tears as she bid me goodbye.
I returned to my loving daughter and my husband.
The whole day, I was thinking of Tapori,
A great woman of sacrifice, love and compassion.